


The Invitation

by heretherebemonsters



Series: Building by Design [8]
Category: Kuroshitsuji | Black Butler
Genre: Best Friends, Boys In Love, Developing Relationship, Falling In Love, Friendship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-28
Updated: 2016-04-28
Packaged: 2018-06-05 00:53:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6682876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heretherebemonsters/pseuds/heretherebemonsters
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A not entirely unexpected invitation arrives in the mail and Sebastian has a chat with Grell.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Invitation

**Author's Note:**

> I own nothing you recognize.

The invitation came in the mail on Saturday morning.

Sebastian was up early, earlier than normal on a Saturday, and had sat on the back patio with his tea to watch the sun come up. He was frustrated that he hadn’t been able to sleep later but his night had been filled with troubled dreams and he’d woken up several times throughout the nighttime hours. When dawn began to lighten the sky behind his bedroom drapes, he’d resigned himself to the fact that he wouldn’t be getting any more sleep and had gotten up for the day. He sat outside until well after eight, nursing his tea and reading a book as the sun rose.

He missed Claude. It had only been three days since the older man had left town on his latest contracting job but it already felt like ages to Sebastian. They had talked every night on the phone before bed and it was always lovely to hear Claude’s smooth deep voice like honey on his ears, but it was still a poor substitute for actually being with him. Over the last four months, Sebastian had become accustomed to having Claude around nearly every night whether he went to Claude’s house or Claude came over to his. He had grown used to having Claude’s strong arms around him as he fell asleep, his warm breath on his neck. The bed just felt empty, cold and uninviting without the other man.

Sebastian went about a few of his morning chores with Claude on his brain, thinking about the man’s unexpected sense of humor and his stunning golden eyes and that really great smile of his. Such thoughts brought a smile to his own lips; he wasn’t quite ready to say that he’d fallen in love just yet but he was nearly there. The idea was a bit scary still but Sebastian knew his heart would be safe with Claude.

It was just before nine when Sebastian heard the metallic thunk of his mailbox closing on the front porch. His place was one of the first stops along his mailman’s route so the mail always arrived around this time every day, except Sunday of course. Sebastian always liked picking up the mail right after it was delivered on Saturdays since the other days of the week he was already at work and had to wait until the evening to see if any of the packages he’d ordered had come or if he’d gotten a letter from a relative. He went to grab it now, stepping out into the still cool morning air, the cement of the front stoop cold against his bare feet. He paused for a moment to listen to the birds singing in the trees. It looked to be another beautiful day. He took the mail from the box and went back inside, lamenting that it was a real shame that Claude wouldn’t be there to share the day with him.

There was the electric bill he’d been waiting for and several pieces of junk mail that were immediately thrown away. Then from behind the local ads fell an envelope unlike any of the others. It was more square rather than the typical business envelope and of heavy cream colored paper that was smooth to the touch. His name and address were printed on the front in a neat cursive script he didn’t recognize. The return address wasn’t familiar but the name attached to it was: Knox.

Sebastian’s breath hitched and his hands trembled slightly. He hadn’t given much thought to Will and Ronald’s impending wedding after he’d begun to spend so much time with Claude but now he recalled that last conversation he’d had with Will about his ring. Surely they wouldn’t…this couldn’t be…could it?

With shaking fingers, he tore into the envelope and fumbled to pull out its contents. Sure enough, it was exactly what he’d feared: a wedding invitation. The missive itself was beautiful and pleasing to Sebastian’s critical eye, printed in black and red on a thick paper that matched the envelope. The date listed was still over two months away. Sebastian’s gaze lingered on the first few lines: Announcing the marriage of William T. Spears and Ronald Knox…

The words made his heart clench tightly in his chest. He couldn’t quite believe he’d gotten an invite to the event and he had to wonder whose idea it had been. Perhaps it had been Will’s, out of lingering guilt for everything that had happened, or Ronald’s in an effort to smooth things over. If it was meant to be an underhanded apology for demanding his ring back it was one that Sebastian would rather never have gotten at all.

A spike of anger rose within him and he threw the invitation down on the kitchen counter with a huff. Perhaps they both just wanted to gloat and rub it in his face that they were getting married. Perhaps it was Will’s final way of saying that he just wasn’t good enough. Either way, no matter what the real reason behind the invitation to the one event he most assuredly would not want to attend, Sebastian decided that he wasn’t going to let it bother him. It certainly wasn’t worth any more of his tears, not when he was happy with Claude. He stuffed the invite in the kitchen junk drawer and promptly went about the business of forgetting about it.

Sebastian stayed busy that day, running errands around town and spending a few hours with Grell in the afternoon. They had an afternoon cup of tea on Grell’s front porch, settled into the porch swing comfortably beside one another. Grell drew his feet up, tucking them underneath himself, letting Sebastian use his long legs to lazily rock the swing back and forth. Neither of them spoke for a while, just taking in the sights and sounds of Grell’s street on a spring day. In the pause of his day’s hustle and bustle, Sebastian recalled the invitation sitting in the drawer back home. He’d largely been successful in putting it from his mind but now it popped up once more, silently mocking him. Sebastian bit his lip, letting his half- finished tea sit cradled between his palms in his lap.

Grell noticed his blank stare and nudged him gently with an elbow. “Hey, Earth to Bassy.”

Sebastian jolted slightly, knocked out of his reverie, and glanced over at his friend with a sheepish smile. “Sorry. Got a lot on my mind.”

Grell grinned back knowingly. “Can’t get your Claudie-poo off your mind huh?” he teased, leaning over to bump his shoulder against Sebastian’s.

Sebastian blushed. It wasn’t exactly what had been on his mind right then but it was still true. “I miss him, Grell,” he confessed quietly.

“I know you do, love,” Grell replied before taking a drink of his tea. “It’s all over your pretty little face.”

Sebastian sighed. “That obvious, huh?”

Grell chuckled and his green eyes twinkled mischievously. “No not really, but I know what you look like when you’re in love.” Sebastian looked away in embarrassment, his cheeks heating even more. He opened his mouth to protest but Grell cut him off. “Ah, ah, now. Don’t try to deny it. You’d just be lying to me and to yourself.”

Sebastian knew Grell was right so he said nothing. The redhead chuckled again. “That’s what I thought.” He took a leisurely sip of his tea and waited for Sebastian to speak.

Several long moments passed before Sebastian said quietly, “I haven’t told him, you know. Hell, I haven’t really even fully admitted it to myself yet.”

Grell lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “There’s no hurry. Let things happen in their own time.”

“How are you always so right about everything?”

The corner of Grell’s mouth lifted in a grin and his green eyes sparkled merrily behind the frames of his red glasses. “Because I’m your best friend and it’s my job to always be right.” There was a light, teasing tone in his voice that made Sebastian smile despite himself. “Besides,” Grell went on, suddenly turning serious, “I know you, Bassy. I can tell you’re still scared.”

Sebastian said nothing at first. He sighed and took a drink of his tea. He gave the porch swing another push and listened to it creak faintly. Grell remained silent beside him, once more waiting patiently. Finally, Sebastian said, “I am still scared.” It was a starkly honest admission, spoken in complete and utter trust to the person he confided in most easily.

Grell nodded and reached over to pat his knee comfortingly. “These things take time, love. But you have to let Claude help you heal yourself. He’s a good man and he really cares about you.”

“I know,” Sebastian said softly, thinking back to everything Claude had already done for him, all the support and comfort he’d offered. “It’s hard to imagine my life without him, actually.”

Grell let out a soft chuckle. “I think you have your answer right there, in case there was any doubt.” Grell shook his head, his expression turning wistful for a moment. “That man’s a keeper, I’m telling you.”

Sebastian elbowed Grell in the ribs playfully. “Back off, he’s mine!”

Grell laughed and held up a placating hand. “Easy. I’m just sayin.”

They laughed together and Sebastian felt some of the tension drain out of his body. He would definitely rather not even broach the subject of the pesky invitation but he also did want to hear Grell’s opinion on the matter. So after several minutes, he spoke up. “Actually Grell, there was one other thing that’s been on my mind today.”

“Oh? What’s that?” Grell proceeded to drain the last of his tea.

“This morning I got an invitation in the mail to Will’s wedding.” He thought it best to just come right out with it.

Grell’s reaction didn’t disappoint. The redhead’s eyes widened and he choked on his tea, spluttering and coughing but managing to not spew it everywhere. It was several moments before he could get enough breath back to stammer, “W-what?! A legitimate invitation?”

Sebastian nodded. “Yep.”

“What the hell?!” Grell exclaimed, throwing up a hand in exasperation. “Just why would you have gotten an invite?”

It was Sebastian’s turn to shrug. “I don’t know,” he said helplessly. “I’m not sure what to think.” He paused. “Or what to do about it.”

“That’s easy,” Grell burst out. “Shred the damn thing.”

Sebastian’s brows drew together as he tried to puzzle through it all. “But…am I admitting to some kind of defeat by not going? Doesn’t my going prove I’m the bigger person? Or something?”

Grell was still outraged. “Honey, you most definitely don’t have to concern yourself with what those assholes think of you.”

“I know,” Sebastian agreed readily. “But what if it’s less about what they think and more about what I think of myself?”

That tripped Grell up. He paused and appeared thoughtful for a long minute. “Since when did you become so philosophical on me?” The question was apparently meant in a rhetorical manner because he didn’t give Sebastian the chance to answer before he continued. “I suppose if you’re that concerned with what your attendance or non-attendance says about you as a person then I guess you should go. But I just don’t want to see you put yourself through that.” Grell looked troubled now, crimson brows drawn low over his bright eyes.

The more Sebastian thought about it, the more it seemed that actually making an appearance at the wedding was the right thing to do. He could say one last final farewell to Will and Ronald and hopefully the experience would allow him some of the closure he’d been searching for. “I think it might be a good thing for me, actually.”

Grell’s brows shot up in surprise. “How do you figure that?”

“Well,” Sebastian said slowly, casually swirling the last bit of his Earl Grey around his tea cup. “Maybe it’ll actually be a way for me to finally close that part of my life, you know? Finally move on.” He shrugged. “I’m going to have to let go of all that sooner or later. I can’t keep putting Claude through all of my insecurities. It’s not fair to him.”

Grell blew out a breath. “Well, kudos to you for that train of thought.”

Sebastian smiled wryly. “I know Claude is willing to stick around for as long as it takes for me to figure things out but I feel like I can’t move forward with him until I close the book on Will for good.”

“Ah,” Grell said knowingly. “Is this prompted by the acknowledgment that you do harbor some deep feelings for him?”

Once again, Grell had hit the proverbial nail on the head. “I guess so,” Sebastian agreed. “I want to have a future with Claude. I’ve known that since the first night he took me out. It’s not that I still won’t have some fears moving forward but it’ll be easier to get past them if I can let go of Will once and for all.”

Grell nodded silently, thoughtfully. Now it was Sebastian who waited patiently for his friend to speak. Several moments passed before Grell replied. “I can see the logic behind your thinking. And I sincerely hope it would work. You know I only want what’s best for you, love.” He paused again and chewed his bottom lip. “But I was the one who was there before when you needed a listening ear and someone to spend the night with because you couldn’t bear to be alone. Granted, you have Claude for that now, but I don’t ever want to see you hurt like that again. It broke my heart.”

Sebastian didn’t quite know what to say to that so all he said was, “I know. Thank you for all that.”

Grell waved a hand. “There’s no need to thank me. I’m there for you because I love you. You’re my best friend and that’s never going to change. So if you think this is what you really need to be a better person, then I’ll support you.”

Sebastian knew just how much it meant for Grell to lend his support to an endeavor he harbored personal misgivings about. The sentiment was deeply moving. “Thank you,” he said again, quietly.

“You’re welcome.” With those simple words came Grell’s promise that no matter how things worked out, he would always be there when Sebastian needed him and he would never be the one to say ‘I told you so’ if things didn’t happen the way Sebastian anticipated. No matter the decisions he made, Grell would always care about him. After a beat of silence, Grell chuckled a bit.

“What’s funny?” Sebastian asked, giving his friend a quizzical look.

“Oh nothing really,” Grell replied. “Just thinking about the conversation you’ll have with Claude about this.” He snorted and flipped a long lock of bright red hair back over his shoulder. “Have fun with that, my friend.”


End file.
